Anonymous wrote:OP, hope you can read this without paywall, I read this article a couple of weeks ago and this post reminded me of it:


https://www.thetimes.com/article/046f4e68-df8b-44eb-a5a7-94a8b9c8e8f9?shareToken=11bf36e1f3c570a4495cf312ac15020a

I agree that disastrous trips are the most memorable, as long as no one has been hurt. My siblings and I talk, and laugh, all the time about the trips when my father got into a fight, my brother fell out of the car, and the hotel caught fire. No one was hurt in any of these incidents. (Also, we are not rednecks. You would not have expected any of these things to happen to us). In college, my friends and I saved up for a big trip that was kind of blaaah. We still laugh about the crappy bits. And we’re much better travelers now. Live and learn.

Anonymous wrote:Low expectations are the key to happiness.

There is similar pressure to enjoy New Year's Eve. I call it the night of unfulfilled expectations. Nowadays I sleep through it.

OP, hope you can read this without paywall, I read this article a couple of weeks ago and this post reminded me of it:


https://www.thetimes.com/article/046f4e68-df8b-44eb-a5a7-94a8b9c8e8f9?shareToken=11bf36e1f3c570a4495cf312ac15020a

Anonymous wrote:Been there. One vacation was years in the planning and while I had a great time really, I realized on the last day that I had spent the whole time catering to making sure everyone else was having a good time that I never allotted any time to myself to relax and just "be" present. I was sad about that.
Another well planned out vacation we all ended up with norovirus and altitude sickness so it was a very expensive, total disaster of a "vacation".

It happens, but hopefully your next one will go better.

My mother died during one family vacation. I abandoned the family in New Mexico and flew half way around the world after taking thirty minutes to book the new travel. Fortunately I took my passport on the trip.

There were other years when a grumpy teenager did her best to cause misery, so it's not always weather or illness.

Some of my best trips have been two hours drive from DC where we threw whatever we wanted in the back of the car and had a very relaxing time with good food, good views and no stress.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got food poisoning once on day 1 and spent the entire expensive vacation in an expensive hotel room bathroom floor while my DH did a few of the expensive excursions by himself and we let the other ones go to waste. It was awful, and frankly 8 years later it still is to remember. I always plan for bad weather wherever we go and my expectations there are always low, but you can’t plan for debilitating illness.

Food poisoning is not a debilitating illness. Try an auto-immune disease on for size. Or maybe threw in a few brain tumors.

Someone who hasn't ended up hospitalized by food poisoning. ^^

Or a grownup who has had a serious, long-lasting illness or lost someone from a fatal disease.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got food poisoning once on day 1 and spent the entire expensive vacation in an expensive hotel room bathroom floor while my DH did a few of the expensive excursions by himself and we let the other ones go to waste. It was awful, and frankly 8 years later it still is to remember. I always plan for bad weather wherever we go and my expectations there are always low, but you can’t plan for debilitating illness.

Food poisoning is not a debilitating illness. Try an auto-immune disease on for size. Or maybe threw in a few brain tumors.

Someone who hasn't ended up hospitalized by food poisoning. ^^

Anonymous wrote:I think social media has fed a “travel” monster. It’s just a trip, not a source of fulfillment or an achievement. You can be bummed if it rains but it shouldn’t be a huge deal.

Good point.

Anonymous wrote:You put it in perspective - it’s just a vacation and everyone’s healthy - and plan accordingly so the next trip is better.

+1 I had to spend a lot for my family and I to fly out of our vacation spot early because one of my family members started to show signs of a deadly infection that they still haven't managed to beat. I hope that wasn't the case for you OP.

Been there. One vacation was years in the planning and while I had a great time really, I realized on the last day that I had spent the whole time catering to making sure everyone else was having a good time that I never allotted any time to myself to relax and just "be" present. I was sad about that.
Another well planned out vacation we all ended up with norovirus and altitude sickness so it was a very expensive, total disaster of a "vacation".

It happens, but hopefully your next one will go better.

You put it in perspective - it’s just a vacation and everyone’s healthy - and plan accordingly so the next trip is better.

I just want to know where the vacation was and why it was disappointing!

And a lot of posters are ridiculous. Of course it is okay to be disappointed over a vacation!